The 69th Masters Tournament is in catch-up mode after an abbreviated but eventful first round Thursday.

So what else is new?

Rain interrupted play in the opening round for the third straight year at Augusta National Golf Club, but not before Masters rookie Mark Hensby of Australia took the clubhouse lead with 3-under-par 69.

Luke Donald, another Masters rookie, is also at 3-under through 14 holes.

Chris DiMarco is the leader on the course at 4-under through 14 holes.

"This is the start of the race," DiMarco said. "This is a marathon. We've got a long way to go."

DiMarco, who started his round on the back nine, will pick it up today on one of his favorite holes, the par-3 No. 6, when play resumes at 9:45 a.m.

"No. 6 in the first round last year was great; I made a 1," DiMarco said.

Hensby, the winner of the 2004 John Deere Classic, was one of 24 players in the 93-man field to finish his round, and the only finisher to break par. David Howell, of England, another Masters rookie, had 72, as did Jonathan Kaye and Casey Wittenberg.

Five golfers are at 2-under on the course, including defending champion Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh, the No. 1 player in the world. They both have played 11 holes.

The other players at 2-under are Ryan Palmer (through 16 holes), Retief Goosen (through 13 holes) and Stuart Appleby (through 11).

If DiMarco holds on to be the first-round leader, it will be the fourth time he's either been a leader or co-leader after a round. He did it after the first and second rounds of 2001 and after the third round of 2004.

He played in the final pairing of the 2004 Masters with Mickelson, but shot 76 and tied for sixth. He had opened with 69-73-68.

"I like this golf course; it sets up good for me," DiMarco said. "It appeals to my eye. I like the greens. I think that really goes with my game. I really think I have the good imagination for this out here."

In his four Masters starts, DiMarco has finished in the top 12 each time, with the exception of 2003, when he opened with 82 and withdrew.

"I've felt comfortable every year I've been here," DiMarco said. "Whenever you have success it's always nice to come back, and I've had some good success here."

Hensby is one of eight Australians in the field. As all Australian golfers know, no one from their country has won the Masters.

"This is the biggest event to watch for us, and it's the hardest event to get into," Hensby said. "It's a thrill just to play here."

Hensby, off in the third group of the day, had four birdies and one bogey, betraying the fact that it was his first tournament round at Augusta National.

"There was definitely nerves, but I've been playing pretty well the last couple of weeks," Hensby said.

Hensby is relieved that his first round is in the books.

"It's definitely an advantage getting done," Hensby said. "I don't have to get up real early, and I don't have to come out and play any more holes."

It was not a memorable start for Tiger Woods or Ernie Els, last year's runner-up. Woods is 2-over through 12 holes, and Els is 3-over through 11 holes. Of other notables, Jack Nicklaus (after 12 holes) and John Daly (11 holes) are both 4-over, and David Toms is 5-over after 11 holes.

No one had more problems than 1970 Masters champion Billy Casper. The 73-year-old Casper, playing in the Masters for the first time since his apparent retirement from the event in 2001, would have set three Masters records for futility had he turned in his scorecard. By not doing so, he was disqualified and won't be back for Round 2. Neither will Nick Faldo, who withdrew with a back injury.

Casper would have had the highest nine-hole score (21-over 57 on the back nine), the highest 18-hole round (106) and the highest score on a hole (14 on the par-3 16th hole) had he signed his card.

"I have the card in my pocket; I'm going to frame it," Casper said.

After the round, Casper said he played at the urging of his six children and four grandchildren and was glad he did.

"It was fantastic; just a fantastic day," Casper said. "Just to have the opportunity to perform again on a golf course I dearly love ... the atmosphere and the spirit of the people. The people were so encouraging and wonderful."

Thursday's rain came earlier and lasted longer than last year's.

The 2004 first round was delayed from 4:05 p.m. to 6:15 p.m., then suspended at 7:45 p.m. On Thursday, early morning thundershowers dropped 1.26 inches of rain on the course and delayed the scheduled 8:05 a.m. start for five hours and 25 minutes.

Players went off both No. 1 and No. 10 tees, which caused a logjam after the early starters made the turn and players still hadn't teed off to start their rounds.

"It's so hard to play if you don't necessarily know if you're going to play," DiMarco said. "So when we finally started playing, you kind of have to get yourself back up for it."

The rain didn't take the sting out of the fast bent-grass greens, thanks to the SubAir system that sucks the moisture from them.

"They have some vacuums in these greens, don't they?" DiMarco said. "The greens are perfect, as they are every year. They are the best greens we play all year."

It was the ninth time in the 15 events this season that adverse weather has delayed a round, and the fourth tournament in a row.

"We've dealt with this so much this year, we're just all used to it now," Hensby said.

"I remember a year in the early 1980s when it was like this, but this has been pretty unusual," said Jay Haas, a veteran who is 4-over through 12 holes.

"It's unfortunate for everybody," Haas said. "It's easiest, to me, for the players. We're sitting around and not doing anything. I feel for the tournaments that have suffered, and the spectators. It might be a lifelong dream to come to the Masters ... I'm sure that's frustrating for them. What are you going to do? You've just got to deal with it."

Reach David Westin at (706) 724-0851 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.